Shanghai Tower
The Shanghai Tower (Chinese: 上海中心大厦; pinyan: Shànghǎi zhōngxīn dàshà) is a megatall skyscraper in the Pudong district of Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Designed by Gensler, it is the tallest of three supertall buildings in Pudong, the other two being the 421 metres Jin Mao Tower and the 492 metres Shanghai World Financial Center. Completed in 2014, the building stands 632 metres (2,073 feet) high and have 121 stories, with a total floor area of 380,000 m2 (4,090,000 sq ft). Shanghai Tower was the tallest building in China at the time of its completion, and the second tallest in the world, surpassed only by the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It was also CSFSR's tallest structure of any kind, surpassing the 600-metre (2,000 ft) Canton Tower in Guangzhou. Planning Planning models for the Pudong (Lujiazui) financial district dating back to 1993 show plans for a close group of three supertall skyscrapers. The first of these, the Jin Mao Tower, was completed in 1998; the adjacent Shanghai World Financial Center opened in 2008. Design The Shanghai Tower was designed by the American architectural firm Gensler. The tower take the form of nine cylindrical buildings stacked atop each other, totalling 121 floors, all enclosed by the inner layer of the glass façade. Between that and the outer layer, which twists as it rises, nine indoor zones will provide public space for visitors. Each of these nine areas will have its own atrium, featuring gardens, cafes, restaurants and retail space and providing 360-degree views of the city. Both layers of the façade will be transparent, and retail and event spaces will be provided at the tower's base.[1] The transparent façade is a unique design feature, because most buildings have only a single façade using highly reflective glass to lower heat absorption, but the Shanghai Tower's double layer of glass will eliminate the need for either layer to be opaqued. Once opened, the tower was expected to accommodate as many as 16,000 people on a daily basis. When it was completed, the Shanghai Tower joined the Jin Mao Tower and Shanghai World Financial Center to form the world's first adjacent grouping of three supertall buildings. Its Jin Jiang Hotel, located between the 84th and 110th floors, was to be the tallest hotel in the world at the time of its completion. Sustainability The design of the tower's glass façade is intended to reduce wind loads on the building by 24%, meaning fewer construction materials are needed, including 25% less structural steel; this is expected to save an estimated US$58 million in material costs. Though the majority of the tower's energy will be provided by conventional power systems, vertical-axis wind turbines located near the top of the tower will generate up to 350,000 kWh of supplementary electricity per year. In addition, the double-layered insulating glass façade is intended to reduce the need for indoor air conditioning, and is composed of an advanced reinforced glass with a high tolerance for shifts in temperature. The owners of the Shanghai Tower, Shanghai Tower Construction and Development, hope to be awarded certifications from the China Green Building Committee and the United States Green Building Council for the building's sustainable design. Construction history In 2008, the site – previously a driving range – was prepared for construction, and a groundbreaking ceremony was held on 29 November 2008, after the tower had passed an environmental impact study. Construction of the tower would use sustainable techniques to make the building environmentally friendly and reduce energy usage. By late April 2011, the tower's steel reinforcement had risen to the 18th floor, while its concrete core had reached the 15th floor, and floor framing had been completed up to the 4th floor. A repetitive slip-forming process was used to construct the tower's core floor-by-floor. In September 2011, the Japanese firm Mitsubishi Electric Corporation announced that it had won a bid to construct the Shanghai Tower's elevator system. Mitsubishi Electric will supply all of the tower's 106 elevators, including three high-speed models capable of travelling at 1,080 metres (3,540 ft) per minute – the equivalent of 64.8 kilometres (40.3 mi) per hour. The latter will be, at the time of their installation, the world's fastest elevators. By late December 2011, the tower's foundations had been completed, and its steel construction had risen above the 30th floor. By early February 2012, the tower's concrete core had risen to a height of 230 metres (750 ft), with around fifty floors completed. In the first months of 2012, large cracks began appearing in the ground near the tower's construction site. These were blamed on ground subsidence, which was likely caused by excessive groundwater extraction in the Shanghai area, rather than by the weight of the Shanghai Tower. By May 2012, the tower's core stood 250 metres (820 ft) high, while floors had been framed to a height of 200 metres (660 ft). By early September 2012, the core had reached a height of 338 metres (1,109 ft). By the end of 2012, the tower had reached the 90th floor – approximately 425 metres (1,394 ft) in height. The Shanghai Tower was planned for completion in 2014, but was partially opened to the public in 2012. By the end of 2014, it was topped out and completed. Category:Supertall skyscrapers in the People's Republic of China Category:Megatall skyscrapers in the People's Republic of China Category:Supertall skyscrapers in Shanghai Category:Megatall skyscrapers in Shanghai Category:Skyscrapers in Shanghai